While staying at home, I’ve been offering 45 Minute Virtual Design Consult appointments (using what you already have). I’ve done several the last few weeks and I thought I’d show you the one for Sue’s living room in Connecticut. To get the best out of our meeting, there has to be some…
Prep Work
- send me about six photos of the space
- take measurements of the room’s walls and openings
- before our virtual meeting, move all the art and accessories to one place for us to “shop”
Then, comes the fun part!
Sue’s Living Room Before
Sue was having a tough time with the long and narrow room. The wall color is nice and she has good furniture. Here were my suggestions:
- in the pie safe/bookcase store some of the Hummel collection so that we could restyle the shelves to update (which we did via Facetime)
- move the chest/buffet down to balance the shelves on the other side of the fireplace
- take the four botanicals and hang them together above the chest (I did a quick sketch to show Sue what I meant)
- raise the curtain rods above the frames and shorten the hems to touch the floor.
- move the matching upholstered chairs so that they are facing the conversation area
- the existing ottoman is too big
- take the little shades off the sconces for a new look (possibly buy small drum shades)
- move the antique table between the windows out to have better flow (sometimes less furniture is better)
- with a glass coffee table, I like to style the bottom shelf, too, to add weight. I made sure we had the last few minutes to do this.
After
At this point, we used everything that Sue had, including moving a smaller compatible rug in here from another room. But we needed a smaller ottoman so we ordered these to try from the Target McGee and Co. line…
And that’s what you can accomplish with a 45 Minute Virtual Design Consult!
Sue wanted a few more things to finish up so she purchased another 45 minutes and I gave her more recommendations for painting the brick fireplace, window treatments, lighting, art, etc.
It will be fun to bring you an update to this post…including which ottoman we decided on!
I loved getting a message from Sue (after all her hard work) that she and her husband, Gary were so happy and actually sat and had a drink in their living room for the first time!
Come back on Thursday for a self-care post with some of my favorite bloggers… we can all use some pampering!
You’ve waved your magic wand once again and done wonders for this room. Can’t wait to see it after she’s done some of the other changes. Great job!
WOW, Mary Ann! You nailed it….Love the “After”. You always inspire!
I LOVE this!!! What an inspiration/ and true testament to what a professional can do! Amazing! And thank you for inspiring me to take similar shaped, VERY old shades OFF my chandelier! Changes the whole look of a room! Thank you! Love your posts.
Thanks so much 🙂
Mary Ann,
You are so amazing. This 45-minute design work looks fantastic. I love seeing these, it always inspires me to tweak a few things.
xo,
Karen
Beautiful! Still their home but so much better.
Thanks…yes..still their home!
Love this and the thought process explained!
Easy for me to see but we need Sue to carry out the labor!
Much better layout and more pleasing composition.
Thank you!!
I love the new look of the room. It feels so much more welcoming and warm. Adding the floral arrangement on top of the bookcase added needed height and the baskets give it a fresh look. The baskets compliment the drapes. I would choose the neutral colored ottoman since it compliments the pillows and draws everything together, too. It makes the chairs stand out rather than drawing your eye to the ottoman. Placing the chairs in front of the window helped so much, too. They draw you into the room and it makes the seating area feel like it is part of the one by the fireplace instead of a separate one. Moving the buffet down and adding the botanicals above it balances the bookcase on the other side. I love how you see the prints above the chair, they are hung at the perfect height. You were spot-on with all your suggestions!
Thanks so much!
I am that lucky client in Connecticut!!! I just want to extend a great big thank you to Mary Ann. It truly was a great experience. She really used what I had and was spot on with all of her recommendations! This was one of those things that I did in quarantine and couldn’t be happier.
Thank YOU for being my partner!
What a transformation and what a lucky client. I bet she is thrilled with the outcome!
Yes. And the good part is that it can be done fairly quickly.
45 minutes! Wow! Gorgeous new feel and she already had the components. Looking forward to follow-up post. xo